Certain governors, including Governor Tim Walz of Minnesota, seem to apply one standard for reopening “non-essential” secular services and another for religious. This week, Walz made the bizarre announcement that while bars, restaurants, and barbers can reopen on June 1, churches can’t. From the Wall Street Journal:
The churches are asking for equal treatment not special treatment, and the decision to reopen came only after efforts to work out an arrangement with the Governor were ignored. As a result, starting June 1, while a restaurant or bar can serve up to 50 people outdoors, churches remain restricted to gatherings of 10 or fewer—indoors or out. As the Becket Fund notes, these Minnesota churches plan to reopen with only 33% capacity, rigorous social distancing and hygiene protocols.
The editors are the Journal are right. If it’s safe enough to reopen businesses — provided they adhere to new protocols — it would be unconstitutional to deny religious organizations the same opportunity. Both the attorney general and the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals have already made this clear.